The elusive artist and photographer, Alva V. Alegre, is still making waves here at PortraitsofWar. Two recent visitors to the site have been able to shed some light on his work. I’m posting the first here for followers of Alva’s work to see before I set into the newly acquired info regarding his background.

The following shot was sent to me by an art collector on the East Coast who luckily had the painting conserved and removed from a foam core backing after finding the work in a Virginia antique shop. The style is quintessential Alegre and incorporates the scantily clad and thin wasted figure so often depicted in his WWII work.

Newly Discovered Alegre Artwork

Alva Alegre at Work in England, 1944

Alegre’s work has fascinated me for nearly six years, and I’ve spend countless hours searching for other examples of his work, as well as for tidbits that may lead to information related to his life. For those of you who haven’t seen my posts on Alva, please check out the links below:

If you have an Alegre painting in your collection, please come forward with a photograph. His work has been coming out of the woodwork in the past six years, and the story of his life is quickly unraveling. A special thanks to Scott for his generous photograph of his prized Alegre work of art.